I'll take a wild leap here and post a bit of the story that's been knocking about in my noggin for several years... I even have a title for it: This Lesser Earth (which might be a tad lofty for a Western, come to think of it). This Lesser Earth refers to the body we have that is made of dust, as in 'From dust thou came, to dust returneth' at the funeral. I believe either Michaelangelo or da Vinci referred to the human body as 'this lesser earth'.
I've got piles of books I've been using for research: books about women's journeys West, mail-order brides, diaries written by young, middle-aged, and old women, etc. I've got a setting - western Oklahoma.
I've got this vision in my head about seeing some ramshackle ol' farm house, all but completely collapsed with nothing but the cellar left... and inside the cellar, an old Mason or Ball jar filled with some lady homesteader's 'time capsule' for someone to find long after she's returned to dust.
What's in that jar, how it gets there, why it gets there, and who put it there make up my MC's story. She's inside that noggin', like I said, but she won't come out.
[insert indian w/ arrow smiley]
When Mac starts lookin' for volunteers, it's wise to clarify exactly what she's meanin'.
